Chapter 148: I wish I could take away your pain...

A few days later, Rhea was able to walk on her own without Draven’s assistance. It was uncomfortable for her because he treated her like a child, carrying her to the bathroom and waiting on her. He even insisted on feeding her as if she couldn’t do it herself.

Although she didn’t dislike his help, in fact she would have loved it if her mind was not all so messed up with countless thoughts and anger towards herself. However, Draven made sure not to give her any time to think or grieve. Yesterday, he even took her to the snowy palace grounds where the young princesses and princes were playing and chasing each other.

In the past, Rhea would have been delighted to see the children playing and might have joined them. However, her mind was elsewhere. She was too busy thinking about her journey to the bonelake and looking forward to her revenge to feel delighted about the children. But what she didn’t allow herself to do, was dwell on the terrible memories of the execution hole, she was fighting hard not to let it arise in her thoughts; she focused on her journey instead.

Today, Rhea decided it was time to begin her journey. She was too eager to wait any longer. She had obtained a map from Ethan and planned to leave without telling Draven or Ethan. Fortunately, Ethan, who had been constantly hovering around her room, wasn’t there today. She was relieved that he wasn’t outside her room as she stepped out.

Rhea didn’t carry anything with her apart from the map in her pocket and a long cloak over her head. She walked into the frozen forest. Though her body hadn’t yet fully recovered, she was too determined to care. Her pace wasn’t too hurried nor too slow as she made her way into the forest.

As she walked deeper into the forest, she felt her legs slowly started to ache, but she ignored the pain and continued walking not until she stumbled over a fallen branch and landed face first, striking her forehead against the tree trunk.

Rhea let out a painful cry, but managed to crawl upright and pat down her disheveled clothes. However, when she felt the trickle of blood on her face, she realized that the hit had injured her head. Touching her own blood, she let out a laugh - a laughter that was both mocking and despairing, revealing the sorrow in her dark eyes.

Suddenly, an overwhelming urge to cry washed over her. Any amount of pain or blood only served to remind her of her family’s betrayal and Cal’s death. But instead of tears, she allowed herself to laugh uncontrollably, almost manically. She despised them all so intensely that she wished for their deaths, she wanted to place blame on someone other than herself.

Azure, Oriana, and her family were the only ones to blame...

To prevent her tears from falling, Rhea tilted her head. No more crying. She resolved not to allow herself to shed another tear, having endured enough misery caused by other people. It was time for her to make them feel her pain. With that determination, Rhea resumed walking.

Rhea spent the entire day walking without stopping to rest until dusk. Due to her physical condition, she wasn’t able to walk very fast, and now she regretted not bringing anything with her to rest in for the night. As she got closer to her destination, she noticed that the snow was picking up. The wind was almost unbearable, making it difficult for her to see where she was going.

By chance, she came across a tent at a certain point. Curious, Rhea approached the tent to see if anyone was inside. However, to her surprise, there was nobody there. Inside the tent, she found a cozy sleeping area and a selection of fruits. Despite her exhaustion, Rhea didn’t concern herself with the owner’s potential return and decided to enter the tent, closing it behind her. She thought she would leave if the owner came back.

Rhea ate from the fruits and lay down to sleep, however, she didn’t sleep well. She had a dream. The dream wasn’t clear, she saw things that made no sense to her. But slowly, she saw a figure that appeared in front of her.

It was Cal, he didn’t say anything but stared at her with blood dripping from his body to the extent it made a pool of blood around him.

Without a word, he turn away and started to walk away from her. Rhea ran after him, "Cal, please stop. Wait for me, I want to go with you!" She cried, but he didn’t stop until he disappeared.

The entire night, Rhea was just having dreams that made no sense. And when she woke up the next morning, she felt even more exhausted than she was before falling asleep. She opened the tent and stared blankly at the fierce wind that blew around the frozen lands.

After awhile, she got up and stretched her limbs before she resumed her journey while silently thanking the unknown owner of the tent she’d slept in.

Rhea reached a certain point where the wind wasn’t that strong, the area was vast with no trees or mountains. It was quiet and peaceful, it made her momentarily forget her heartache.

Before Rhea knew it, it was getting dark again. She’d calculated her journey beforehand, she was supposed to reach the bonelake by nighttime today, but she realized if she continued, she wouldn’t have the energy to soak in the lake this night, thus it would be better to sleep the night somewhere and continue in the morning.

But where could she possibly sleep in a vast place like this with such fierce wind? It wasn’t like she’d be lucky twice to find another tent...

Another tent!

Rhea saw another tent a few steps ahead of her. When she walked towards it, she realized it was just like the first one, it had a cozy sleeping place. She was stunned for a moment, but then thought perhaps the owner of the tent was also traveling in this direction. She didn’t even have time to put any logic in why anyone would be traveling here with tents, she was too exhausted to think, thus she entered and closed it behind her.

As night fell completely, the snowstorm also intensified to the extent she thought it would blow away the tent. Rhea used the blanket to cover her head to block out the sound of the wind. Perhaps it was due to her exhaustion, but she immediately fell asleep the moment she pulled the blanket over her head.

In the depths of the night, she experienced a horrifying dream. At first, it was puzzling because everything around her was red, and there was a piercing scream echoing in the crimson light. Gradually, Rhea realized that the scream belonged to her, and the surroundings became clear in her sight.

She found herself back in that dreadful execution hole, but this time, she was a mere bystander, observing what was unfolding. Directly across from her stood Cal, appearing alive and watching the other version of herself on the ground, embracing his melting body.

Rhea noticed that the living Cal was also approaching the spell. She desperately tried to run towards him, to prevent him from stepping into it, but no matter how much she ran, she couldn’t reach him. Consequently, she began to shout for him to stop, begging him not to attempt to save her. She watched as he, too, started to melt like the first Cal.

Amidst her screams and tears, she felt someone grasp her shoulders.

"Rheanna!"

The voice calling her name sounded eerily familiar, yet it wasn’t enough to awaken her from the nightmare. She longed to open her eyes, not wanting to witness the unfolding events, but it felt as though something was preventing her from waking up.

No please, wake me up. She cried.

"Rheanna!"

This time she felt the person shake her shoulders, and she jolted awake. But before she could make clear her surroundings, the person who woke her pulled her into his embrace. Immediately, his familiar masculine scent calmed her chaotic mind. She clutched on to his shirt like clutching onto her dear life.

"I don’t want to experience it again..." she sobbed into his embrace.

Draven held her tightly against his chest, feeling the dampness of her tears seeping into his shirt. The wetness felt like a piercing to his heart, prompting him to tighten his embrace and draw her closer to his body as they both settled back on the floor of the tent, with Rhea laying on top of him as he soothingly caressed her back while whispering words into her ears.

"You will be alright, I am here. Go back to sleep."

Like a child, she obediently listened to his voice and drifted off to sleep once more. However, her body still trembled slightly from the effects of her nightmare, and her small hands continued to clutch onto his shirt, as though she feared he would leave her.

Draven had just come to check if she was sleeping peacefully, just like he had done the previous night after setting up the tent for her. However, to his surprise, he discovered that she was crying and trembling in her sleep. Witnessing her in such a state broke his heart, and if there was anything he could do to alleviate her suffering, he would do it.

He had never felt such a strong connection to anyone before. All he knew was that Rheanna was important to him, and his sole desire now was to bring her happiness and bring back the spirited and sometimes annoying Rhea who always managed to get under his skin. He yearned to heal her and show her what true happiness meant, but he couldn’t accomplish that while she was so broken.

With a sigh, Draven embraced her tightly and gently stroked her hair, feeling the rhythm of her peaceful breath against his chest.

"I wish I could take away your pain..." he whispered softly.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read